On the same day as anti-Islamic rhetoric intensified in the wake of a train blast by terrorists in Russia, the FBI was unraveling a scheme by another terrorist group, the Hutaree, as its members plotted to kill several US police officers in Michigan. The Hutaree's name, literally translating to "Christian warrior," sent shockwaves through mainstream Christians who preferred to denounce the group as a "fringe anti-government cult" instead of using the cringing "Christian terrorist" label, which by word connotation maligns the image of the entire faith.
This reaction is reminiscent of numerous Muslim objections to negative media labels of Islam. However, the Muslim voice is constantly muffled in the public forum. Why? Although Islam is a religion, not a race, the majority of the six million modern-day adherents in the US are primarily ethnic persons. They form a vulnerable racial minority before a Caucasian-controlled media that has a carte blanche to insult the religion's ancient name, "Islam," by using it as a root word within the modern media-coined "Islamist" label for cult militant activities.
This spurious terminology confuses a public that by word association commingles the values of the cult with the mainstream. The impact of identifying each terrorist by his faith is equivalent to hypothetical headlines stating, "Caucasian bank robber, member of church XYZ, shoots Mr. X"; or "In US, one woman every 12 minutes suffers domestic violence by Christian man"; or, "Jewish Madoff swindles countrymen"; or "Black Christian gang member kills five." These bigoted headlines would correctly create an outrage for implying that the disclosure of racial and religious information is relevant to a criminal action.
Yet for mainstream US Muslims, these types of racist headlines are a daily reality. The media's use of terminology like "Islamic extremists" and "Muslim terrorists" is scripted to stereotype general Muslims under the umbrella of cult activists. This discriminatory reporting is most glaring when juxtaposed with coverage of non-Muslim-related acts of terrorism.
So, recently, when in a single horrific instance an ethnic US army officer, Major Hasan, killed several of his fellow soldiers at Fort Hood, the media quickly explored his Muslim roots. In contrast, when it came to reporting on several Christian soldiers, like Sgt. John Russell, who shot uniformed comrades, the media -- correctly -- not only never used the word "Christian" but also attempted to explore those actions under the human backdrop of "post-traumatic stress disorder" rather than religious background.
Comparable to the outlawed "Muslim Taliban," the KKK is a legalized US organization, which, despite its deadly history of religion-justified violence, is identified as a "white supremacist" group rather than a "Christian terrorist" group. Analogous to the 9/11 scenario, a February suicide plane attack on an IRS building by an infuriated anti-government protester, Joseph Stack, is called "crazy" but not a "Christian terrorist act" on US soil. Muslims who become unruly in expressing political dissent earn a "terrorist" status, unlike the merely "uncivil" label for the perpetrators of last week's hate-fest against pro-health care bill senators, who were hounded by death threats and vandalism.
The local nature of the Hutaree reminds me of another domestic terrorist act, the Oklahoma City federal building bombing, fifteen years earlier. I lived in an educated East coast community, working amongst some of the elite business professionals of the region. I mistakenly hoped for tolerance in this "intelligent" society. Yet within the first half-hour of the Oklahoma crisis, my angry and emotional supervisor menacingly addressed me in the presence of our lead manager, "Hey, you know what! We are going to find those terrorists, and when we do, we will bomb that country to shreds. Just you wait." The next week the hunt was on for a local white man, Timothy McVeigh, who, despite being hated by the public, has never been labeled a "Christian terrorist."
In recent years, I have been residing in a Bible Belt state, where amongst Christian outreach and kindness are reminders of Christian insularity, a behavior that rejects diversity. Emblazoned in my memory is a particular time when my daughter was six. I had chuckled as she asked during the Christmas season, "Mommy, everyone at school keeps saying Jesus Crises, Jesus Crises. What is wrong with him, Mommy? Is he in trouble?" As believers in Jesus, I had previously taught her the Muslim reverence for the Islamic concept of Prophet Jesus but had never used the term "Jesus Christ." Once the mystery was clarified to her, my elated child returned to school, sharing with her classmates the fact that she now understood what they meant by "Jesus Christ!"
A few days later, I was not laughing as she sobbed, recounting how a few kids at recess said that their "parents don't want them to play with someone who did not know who Jesus Christ was." Whether in the "cosmopolitan" East coast or the "God-loving" South, this insular mentality exhibited at work, at school, and in homes becomes the foundation for bias, building walls amongst our fellow citizens by eventually blinding opportunities to defend one another's civil liberties. The media capitalizes on this public complacency, receiving a carte blanche to insult certain groups without impunity.
Yet the emotional damage suffered by Muslim families, harassed at work and school by a public whose media-enabled prejudices foster a culture of broad-brush hate, is devastating. So this week I was able to relate to my Christian neighbors, who, because of the Hutaree saga, all of a sudden felt painfully attacked and defensive of a religion that helps them to lead more fulfilling and loving lives. Upstanding Christians made the correct media appeal to refrain from using the "Christian terrorist" label to refer to a fringe element that is actually "un-Christian." These same individuals should better appreciate the emotional scars inflicted by the name-calling media upon the mainstream American-Muslim community, in the spirit of the Christian golden rule: "Do unto others as you would have them do unto yourself." It's time to work together to end Islamophobia, too.
Yes, when Muslims call for the murder of the creators of south park using the sunnah of the Islamic prophet and his reaction to slanderers, the rest of us have the right to ask if indeed that is a valid interpretation and if so, what other Muslims will do to counter that.
Same with any religion.
I have no doubt that there are bigots who dislike all Muslims, but that has nothing to do with a fair critique of injunctions for violence that are claimed to be part of the religion by experts in that faith.
What should worry moderates is the extremest literal interpretations of qur'an and hadith seem to prevail.
The Christian people I know are good as people.
I would refrain from doing what the media does to Muslims. It is not right then they do it to us. We as Muslims will get used to it, and go about our daily lives. However, as for me, I strain at reaching out beyond where I feel comfortable, and I suppose alot ot Muslims do the same.
The bad part about all of this...Muslims like myself would be the biggest ally against terrorists in free nations. Having terrorism simply be a stereotype will make me think a bit long if I should hear of something I should tell the authorities to watch out for.
So...by making terrorism a stereotype, the fight against the extremists is hampered for the good, and aided for the evil. All they have to do is send someone to do thier bidding that does not fit the stereotype.
Co-mingling mainstream persons with “crazy nuts†is a clever way to perpetuate broad-brush hate. So, even when religion is misused as the basis for a motive, the terminology should qualify the group as a fringe, cult, etc. This is the precedent with even a large group like the Nazis who (justifying supremacy because of Jesus’s supposedly blonde hair and white face) are never referred to as Christian terrorists, a statement that would implicate millions of mainstream Christians who helped defeat that most repulsive army!!
Let’s end the double standard
Not to take away anything from the Bible that is also has its moments of violence directed against infidels.
Regardless, it is easy to look at one line or sentence and twist it to what you want, but we all have to look at these religions holistically, and respect that the majority of those followers are peaceful and more like you than you may realize. Bigoted terms like "Islamist" only adds to making the world a more dangerous and unlivable place.
In that vain, would it be responsible for us to label Bush's war in Iraq as "religious Christian crusades?" After all, he has stated that Jesus was his hero, and on national TV, stated that God himself told Bush to go into Iraq.....sounds pretty crazy to me, but it would be foolish to think Bush represents the Christian faith (or even Americans!) Furthermore, and more relevant to this article, it would be a misleading for the world to label the war we've killed so many innocent civilians in as a Christian act or terrorism.
Lets also not forget that Bin Laden was such a fringe person in his own country of Saudi Arabia that he had to flee and operate out of the caves of Afghanistan. Clearly, such a radical character can hardly act as a poster child for Islam, which, incidentally literally translates to "peace" To do so would be naive and idiotic at best, hateful and bigoted at worst.
Thanks for a great article-- love the insight and hope we see more posts from you.
Obviously the same cannot be said of the examples of the so-called ‘Christian’ killers that Ms. Khan provides, particularly Timothy McVeigh, who never once alluded to religion as a motive or justification for his actions. The mere fact that the Hutaree ARE being labeled a ‘Christian’ terror group by nearly everyone, when they appear to be little more than an anti-government cult, also undermines Ms. Khan’s point.
Unlike other religion, Islam produces daily violence, dead bodies and global terror groups with clearly defined religious objectives. Most Muslims may disagree with this, but as long as their primary emphasis is on petulantly combating ‘Islamophobia’ rather than confronting the reality of why Islamic terrorists do what they do, then the violence will continue.
The Hutaree militia uniforms included a patch bearing the initials CCR, standing for Colonial Christian Republic. How much more Christian-y could they be?
Mainstream Christians who find the emphasis on the Hutaree's religious beliefs offensive, prejudice or irrelevant are getting a teeny-tiny taste of the stew law-abiding Muslims must eat every single day.
Osama Bin Laden has just as much right to cherry-pick his holy book as Mother Theresa has in cherry-picking hers. And there respective interpretations are just as accurate.
People hate like Usama bin Laden, or these men and women who are the subject of this article. The reason they hate isnt because they read the Bible, or violence is mentioned there...it is because they need to make hatred righteous.
Most of us see and read violence everyday, but we have the God given sence not to react violently, and to vent it in contructive ways. These people are like all the other terrorists...they hate. We cant deal with the problem properly until we stop stereotyping it.
As we say in Islam...a perfect religion practiced by imperfect men and women.
I think that is our problem, just as democracy, freedom, patriotism, and justice are beautiful concepts...practiced by imperfect people. Sometimes these concepts get misused, or become an excuse, or a cover for wrong doing.
I think it is wrong to dismiss the violence done in the name of Islam...but we need your help in rooting it out. I think most of us, Muslim or not have that same goal in mind.
You see, any ideology can be a force for good, or evil. It all depends on the person handling it.
Unless the oppressed themselves take charge of this issue, the media will continue with their biased, and in some cases, intentionally skewed reporting.
Unless the oppressed themselves do not take charge of the issues, the media will continue their biased reporting.